I am a 51-year-old mother of three and grandmother of 1 who has had her head in the sand regarding her weight and physical condition. Although I knew I had gained weight, I truly did not see myself as being as large as I now know that I am.

Yes, I have had stressful challenges in my life as of late...but who hasn't? It is time to stop using those challenges as excuses for why I couldn't work at my weight and work towards a more healthy lifestyle. I am ready...I am willing...I am ...

I am a 51-year-old mother of three and grandmother of 1 who has had her head in the sand regarding her weight and physical condition. Although I knew I had gained weight, I truly did not see myself as being as large as I now know that I am.

Yes, I have had stressful challenges in my life as of late...but who hasn't? It is time to stop using those challenges as excuses for why I couldn't work at my weight and work towards a more healthy lifestyle. I am ready...I am willing...I am committed to this effort!!!

I started out slowly with the Spark People site. Each time I venture into a new area, however, I see more and more results. I have enjoyed looking at other people's Spark pages but have been hesitant to start my own. Now I am diving into that. (Maybe some day I'll be brave enough to add pictures.)

I was very athletic as a child and did not have issues with weight at that time. When I started having kids was when my weight gains began. After my first two kids, I was able to shed most of my weight. However, after the third one, who came nine years later, I've never been the same since. My weight just seemed to go up, up, up. I was sure that there had to be a medical reason for such gains. Now I know that the reasons are due to poor dietary choices. Fast foods have been too much of a convenience. Add to that a lack of consistent exercise and we have the true reasons for my weight gains.

I am learning so much and gaining so much motivation from this site and from everyone who is a part of it. As a result, I have lost my first fifteen pounds. I feel better than I have in a very long time and am committed to continued success as well.

Hi Sparklermom! It's good to see you on another one of my teams! You will love this group, they are active and supportive and definitely up on the issues that we face at this stage in our lives! They have been wonderfully helpful to me!

Hi! Welcome to the Walking/Leslie Sansone Team. You've come to the right place for encouragement, motivation and just plain F-U-N! Hope to get to see more of you on the team! Best of luck on your weight loss journey!